Closer to the Edge
by Angela and MiniMix
Summary: A collection of  mostly  three sentence ficlets written for various pairings and settings. All requests. Will be updated sporadically as requests are completed. Ch.20: I have failed before
1. RoyHughes

This is a collection of ficlets I wrote on tumblr by request on my RP blog. Each story is three sentences. If you have a specific character, pairing setting or anything you'd like to see me write, then feel free to ask. Just drop me a review, PM or an ask at ribbonsofred. tumblr. com with your request and I'll write it up for you~

Requests sent via tumblr will be posted to there first, via an answer to the ask, but will then immediately be posted to this collection as well.

This chapter is the first request I was ever sent, Roy/Hughes. Relationship was not specified, so I chose to go with friendship.

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><p>It's days like this that Roy misses Hughes the most; long days of nothing but paperwork and more paperwork as they work to rebuild Ishval are a pain, and sometimes he wonders if Riza's giving him paperwork from <em>other<em> people's desks too as some sort of twisted revenge for some slight he might have made. The thought of Hughes brings up thoughts of Gracia and Elicia, and on a whim he picks up the phone and dials, smiling when Elicia answers.

It's Hughes' voice he misses most, but as Elicia tells her Uncle Roy about her latest school project he realizes that the hole isn't as big as it used to be.


	2. RoyRiza

**Request:** AU!Painter!Roy/Riza.

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><p>Roy paints many things: people and places, reality or fantasy, anything they ask of him; and they come from all over to see his work, these strangers. They admire his work and he accepts their empty praise for work that they think is done for their pleasure when it's not— it's for his memories and for Riza (even though she's moved on by now, married happily with children), for the dream they'd once shared that he continues painting.<p>

And he knows deep inside that no matter how old he was or what shape the finished piece took, he was still just a twelve year old boy painting flowers for Riza on a rainy summer evening.


	3. OCRiza

This particular fic is OC/Riza, written as a reply to a crack prompt from a friend on Tumblr.

Prompt:** I want you to write me like one of your french fries is what**

It's longer than three sentences though, as will be the next chapter.

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><p>"Alright, it's like this—Pretend for a moment that this french fry is you, okay? And this fry is me, and this onion ring is Riza. With me so far?"<p>

"Yes—but I don't see why—"

"No, shoosh. Be quiet. Don't speak. Let me finish with the scenario." The three food items are set slightly apart.

"Leanne—"

"No Cain, _shush_. Now, this part of the table will be Mustang's office, okay? So we put Riza there, because she's always there—it's sort of ridiculous really, how she plays nanny to him. Honestly. He's almost thirty, he should be able to change his own nappies by now—and you and I will be here, in the library. With me so far?"

"I guess—" The chair creaks as he shift, frowning.

"Good. So, we will walk from the library, over to the office." The two french fries slide across the table towards the onion ring.

"And then when we reach the office, I'll go in and tell her that you want to ask her something—" one fry stops against the onion ring. "And she'll come out to see you." The onion ring moves to the second fry, outside the 'office'.

"But—"

"And then you ask her out. Simple, right?" The two fies and the onion ring are scooped back onto the plate, and smothered in ketchup.

Cain just sighs. _This plan'll never work…_


	4. Roy and Hughes

Once again, more than three sentences. I actually scared the fuck out of myself writing this and ended up having to tone it down to stop myself from having a heart attack.

Prompt:** Two characters go to a creepy bridge out in the country that trains go on. It's the middle of the night. They hear a car come up the lane that should be deserted. And go.**

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><p><em>"They say this place is haunted." Roy motions to the lane where they're standing, just shy of the old train bridge that spanned the river.<em>

_"There's no such thing as ghosts, Mustang." Hughes laughs, and Roy shoves his shoulder lightly._

_"You say that now, but I'm telling you. This lane really is haunted."_

_"Next you'll tell me that you believe in the Loch Ness monster too," Hughes scoffs._

_"Whatever Hughes. But I still think it's haunted."_

_"You're crazy Mustang," Hughes replies, as they start walking again. It's getting late, and they have summer jobs in the morning._

_"Loser."_

_Silence. (Roy thinks he hears an old car coming up behind them, but the sound vanishes a couple seconds later and he decides that he's just hearing things.)_

_"Hughes?" Roy turns, and frowns when he realizes Maes isn't with him anymore. "Hughes? **Maes**. Where the hell are you?"_

_There's no one there, and Roy bolts back to town alone._

**xoxox**

The Resembool Lane was one of those old dirt-road ones, the kind that you usually see in movies about places like Eastern Amestris in the 1960s. The kind of lane that, when you walk down it, makes you think of apple pie and small towns and where everyone knows everyone and 'personal business' is a myth because no one keeps secrets here.

It ran from the edge of town, down through the valley, alongside the old river and right across the old train tracks and into the distance. Once, it had been a busy path, horse-drawn carriages and travelers on foot coming and going all the time; now it's just an empty dirt road that no one uses anymore because there's a paved highway going in the same direction about three miles away that everyone uses instead.

These days, the only traffic it ever received were the local teenagers and tourists looking for old ghost stories.

**xoxox**

_Roy doesn't know what he's supposed to do—his best friend has just **vanished** into thin air—so he does the first thing he can think of, and that's to bang on the front door of the local sheriff's house._

_When the door opens, old Bradley's standing there in a robe and looking annoyed at being woken._

_Within twenty minutes, the entire town's been woken and a search is started for Maes Hughes._

_The search lasts for two weeks, but he's never found._

**xoxox**

They say that back in the 1940s, a local teenager went missing one night after he and a friend went up to the old bridge.

The friend swore up and down that he'd been there one minute and then gone the next and the only clue anyone ever had was the 'sound of a car that vanished after a few seconds'.

There was speculation that the friend had perhaps killed him, or maybe there'd been an accident and Roy Mustang had simply panicked and invented the whole story to hide what had truly happened. But there was simply no evidence either way and eventually the search was dropped, and Roy was let go after an intense questioning.

It was said that for the rest of his life, Roy Mustang visited the spot where Hughes vanished every night, searching for his missing friend.

**xoxox**

_Roy never gives up, and every night he returns to the bridge where he calls out for Hughes and waits for a reply._

_He never receives one._


	5. LingLanFan

Three sentences. Requested by Contemptus.

Prompt:** Ling/Lan Fan**

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><p>Always he is the Young Master, but sometimes he is <em>Ling<em> and heavy breathing and scratches down his back; they don't speak after because there is nothing left to say.

She began following him because that is what she was told to do, because family and honor and _the legacy of our family Lan Fan you must always protect the Young Master_; but now she follows him because it is what she wants and what he has _asked_ (begged once, when there was blood and pain and an almost-death at the hands of a monster with a human face) her to do and she can never deny the Young Master (she can't deny _Ling_).

One day she stops following and he stops leading; they stand side by side instead.


	6. GreedlingLanFan

Three sentences. Requested by Contemptus as well.

Prompt:** GreedLing/Lan Fan**

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><p>In the beginning she hates him, this thing called Greed who has taken her Young Master from her; <em>monsters in human skin<em> her mind whispers to her,_monster inside of your Young Master and you didn't protect him from it._

She doesn't know when that changes, when Greed (Greedling they call him, even as he complains about the name) became a part of him; the lines between the two blur and mix together and they cease to be Greed and Ling and became GreedLing.

And then Greed is _gone_ and there is just Ling again but the lines are still blurred and she can still see Greed inside of him; Ling understands when she calls him by the wrong name sometimes, because he misses Greed too and he says nothing until the tears stop (it's what she needs but not what she wants and that only makes it worse).


	7. GreedDante

Three sentences. Requested by Dante on tumblr.

Prompt:** Greed/Dante (2003 anime)**

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><p>They dance around each other for decades after his escape; two steps forward three steps to the left and one step back, but still they're always just shy of each other.<p>

And then one day he's back (Ed and Al are the catalyst and she really must remember to thank them before she carries out her plans) and emotions bubble to the surface like gas in a tar pit, sticky and thick and cloying on the tongue; but Dante can't let him interfere with what needs to be done and Greed, in the end, is just an extra on her stage (just a rotted branch that must be trimmed if the tree is to survive).

And then he's gone again, and she almost mourns the loss (almost, but not quite because the soul's eroded and there isn't enough left to mourn with) for a moment before she moves on and the world keeps turning.


	8. GreedRoa

Three sentences. Requested by Greed on tumblr.

Prompt:** Greed/Roa**

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><p>Roa's not a big talker, Greed realizes early on; they've been holed up in this bar called the<em>Devil's Nest<em> for a few days now (_his_ bar, the bar he's taken over and made into his own personal base sometime last year), ever since he stumbled across the group of chimeras hiding from the military.

Dolcetto's a chatty fucker, Martel's a smug bitch (he sometimes wants to slap the smirk off her face when she's talking, but he doesn't hit women and she's kind of growing on him), Ulchi's one of the guys you love to go drinking with, and Bido's got the kicked puppy look all the time that he can't help but feel bad for him; Roa's the only one who never really says anything, so Greed takes it upon himself to make the big guy talk.

He's never been able to resist a challenge.


	9. OCOC

Three sentences. Requested by Amelia on tumblr. Leanne's an OC in this case instead of Luna, and Amelia is... Amelia. There's a whole slew of things between these two.

Prompt:** Amelia/Leanne**

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><p>Leanne and Amelia are a bit of an odd pair, in all reality; they're not quite enemies but not quite best friends either. Leanne calls it a trollmance, and that's probably the best way to describe the way they go to lunch together only to leave twenty minutes later yelling insults at each other across the building as they storm in different directions.<p>

But whatever it is, it works really well and Sunday is _their_ day (to the horror of all the restaurants within ten miles).


	10. Pride EdWinry

Three sentences. Requested by Amelia on tumblr as well. Pride!Ed is from BlueBird's Illusion to my knowledge, and I've given them separate bodies because tumblr logic.

Prompt:** Pride!Ed/Winry**

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><p>Winry once thought she was going to marry Ed, but that was before Pride. She and Ed agree that maybe they aren't right for each other after all, and then she packs up and moves back to her Granny's and life continues on.<p>

Now she knows she's going to marry Pride one day.


	11. RoyOCOC

Three sentences. Requested by Cain on tumblr.

Prompt:** Roy/Leanne/Cain Closet Shenanigans**

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><p>"You were in my <em>closet<em>," Roy repeats sternly, and Leanne fidgets in place; beside her is Cain and he looks contrite (but it's not his fault, he was only trying to dissuade her from breaking in and hiding in Roy's closet!) as Roy folds his arms.

"Well, yes, but—" Leanne starts, trying to explain that she _really_ had a legitimate reason to have broken in and hidden in his closet; she doesn't, not really but surely she'll think of one.

"I'm waiting," he says, eyebrows going up.


	12. WinryOC

Three sentences. Requested by Winryon tumblr.

Prompt:** Winry/Leanne 'Sex Chat'**

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><p>"So, Pride's pretty good at it?"<p>

"You have no idea."

"You should try Greed sometime."

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><p>Okay, I think I just uploaded like, eight of these things in about four or five hours. I'm not even sorry, guys.<p> 


	13. Roy

Three sentences. Requested by Roy on tumblr.

Prompt:** Roy gets punished for being the "Hero of Ishval" and has to face the firing squad.**

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><p>He's always known that things would go one of two ways: they'd save Amestris and he'd become Fuhrer, or they'd save Amestris and he'd face the firing squad; he's not surprised when it turns out to be the latter.<p>

They allow him one last request, and he makes the only request he could ever make in this situation.

They give the killing shot to his Lieutenant just as he asks (because Roy always keeps his promises, and he'd promised Riza that if anyone ever needed to shoot him in the back that she'd be the one to do it).

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><p>Next prompt is a RoyRiza happy ending, as requested. I'll get cracking on that one ASAP.<p> 


	14. RoyRizaHappy

Three sentences. Requested by AmintaEos via review.

Prompt:** Roy/Riza (Happy Ending)**

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><p>"You should <em>know <em>that your alchemy isn't for making 'fireworks'," Riza says sternly, unsympathetic when they've come back inside long after dark had fallen; he's spent the last few hours making sparks with his gloves while Allison watches, eyes wide in his lap as the sparks fizzle and pop and fade away far above the both of them.

Roy sulks, because he knew what he was doing, _really_, and burning his eyebrows was clearly part of the plan (he'll never say it was an accident because Allison's _right there_ and she's not supposed to know her father's capable of mistakes yet, she's still young enough to think he's superman), and he sulks further when Riza refuses to pity his loss.

Later, she outright laughs at him when Allison draws them back on with a marker.

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><p>Okay. I'm aware that it's kind of ooc for Roy to use his fire as some form of entertainment, given his character and the burden and everything they went through.<p>

But it's a reference to an old AIM roleplay, so. :P

Next up is a couple of other requests from tumblrs.


	15. RoyPegasus

Three sentences. Requested by Cain from tumblr via Skype. It was a crack crossover prompt. (As a side note, anyone wanting to chat via Skype feel free to ask for it. I like chatting, and I promise that I'm completely insane in a good way.)

Prompt:** Roy/ Pegasus (Pasta and sausages)**

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><p>"Roy-boy," Pegasus coos over his plate; they're having a pasta and sausage dinner together because Pegasus asked (demanded) and Roy can't say no without losing face.<p>

Roy sighs and looks up from his food, eyebrows up and waiting for Pegasus to continue.

"You've got a little bit of sauce right…_there_," Pegasus says, reaching to swipe it off Roy's cheek with his finger.


	16. RoyHughes More than Friends

Three sentences. Requested by an anonymous person on tumblr.

Prompt:** Roy/Hughes (more than friends because reasons)**

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><p>They start as a rivalry, competitive and both determined to outdo the other; when Roy gets more points during an exercise Hughes retaliates by getting the last quiche, and vice versa.<p>

Ishval cements their relationship into something more solid, more real; Roy feels guilt because of Gracia _(please don't have somebody, please don't have someone waiting on you) _but Hughes soothes the worry and the guilt with words and hands and Roy lets go and just _is_ for a little while every night.

He takes care of Gracia after Hughes is gone; it isn't because he cares about her (he does, in a way, because he loved Hughes and through Hughes, Gracia and Elysia), but he swore to Hughes on his wedding day that he would protect Hughes family with his own life if he had to.


	17. RoyOC:Amelia

Three sentences. Requested by Amelia on tumblr.

Prompt:** Roy/Amelia**

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><p>Her friends tease her about the time she nearly had drunk sex with Roy but ruined it by bringing up marriage; later they make up for the teasing by getting her a real date with him.<p>

He's an utter gentleman which is slightly at odds with the way they normally interact, but Amelia kind of likes it; dinner's wonderful and he's wonderful and she spends most of the night having a great time.

They're back to arguing every time they meet by the next day, but she doesn't mind too much because between the yelling and name calling they share secret little smiles and that's nice too.


	18. GreedLing

Three sentences. Requested by Katling on tumblr.

Prompt:** Greed/Ling**

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><p>Greed tells his first lie, and then sucker punches Ling in the face but Ling doesn't let go (he'll never let go).<p>

They're friends (and maybe a little more than friends, maybe he loves Greed just a little more than he should) and he's not going to let Greed just _go_ without a fight; so when Father tries to kill him, Ling does the only thing he can do.

He uses the Stone to save Greed, and he doesn't regret it.


	19. GreedLanFan

Three sentences. Requested by Katling on tumblr.

Prompt:** Greed/LanFan**

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><p>He calls her pet names sometimes ('sweet-cheeks' once, and she slaps him across the face, so he learns to stick with things like 'sweetheart', and even then she still glares) when he talks to her, despite her protests.<p>

After awhile, her protests against his presence in the Young Master and against the pet names and everything he does are only token protests; she's grown fond of the (monster) idiot inside of Ling.

They bring him back to Xing with them, and there they use the Stone to fashion him his own body (he just makes a copy of Ling's, because he thinks he looks pretty damn good like that and she has to agree); and as it turns out, they are good together.


	20. RoyPegasus2

This particular one is a request given to me on tumblr by Cain after I opened my inbox to prompts in celebration of gaining my 100th follower. There's three more after this one, though they aren't written yet.

This is both a direct continuation of the previous Roy/Pegasus three sentence prompt and not a direct continuation. It can be read either way, really.

Prompt:** Roy/Pegasus**

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><p>"You realize," Roy begins lightly. "That I'm not gay, don't you?" He sips his wine slowly, eyes on Pegasus and the other man waves a hand dismissively.<p>

"I'm not actually interested in men, it simple amuses me to watch you squirm," Pegasus counters. "I _was_ married once, you know. To an absolutely lovely woman. But she died, far too young." His eyes are piercing. "That's why I need a Stone."

Roy's attention turns back to his pasta and he doesn't speak for a few moments before he stops toying with the fork and looks up again. "It's impossible to bring back the dead, even with a Stone."

"I will try anyway."

"Even if it means failure?"

Pegasus shrugs, and lifts his fork to take another bite of his dinner. "I have failed before, Mr. Mustang. I will fail again. But eventually, I will succeed. Even if it means death."


End file.
